Arosa may not be the most famous tourist resort in the Alps, but it will be always remembered for leading tourism industry’s fight against climate change. The skiing and hiking destination is offsetting carbon emissions of its visitors and for free.
Explains Arosa Tourismus director Hans-Kaspar Schwarzenbach, “We are doing it because climate change is also affecting us. We are concerned despite the fact that the resort is 1,800 meters above the sea level and the snow security is very high.”
The Alpine mountain resort has launched the initiative for guests who book through the tourist office. So far 2,000 out of 9,00,000 overnight stays have booked the product and had their emissions offset. All they had to do was declare details of their trip, including the mode of transport and the nature of the activity at the resort, adds Schwarzenbach.
A typical guest is responsible for the emission of about 400 kg of carbon dioxide per week. It includes the travel to the resort, the energy consumed in the hotel and the skiing/hiking related emissions. Boarding a train causes fewer emissions than travelling by air. Hiking also leaves lesser carbon footprint than skiing.
So far, Arosa has invested about Euros 30,000 ($40,000) in carbon offsetting. The investment has been made from the tourist tax, which is CHF 4.20 ($3.50) per day per tourist.
The latest carbon offsetting initiative involved a Bavarian company, Schmack Biogas, to enable it to increase it renewable energy production. It was conceived and developed by Munich-based service provider ClimatePartner, which is a management consultancy specialising in economical and sustainability aspects of climate protection.
Says ClimatePartner managing director Moritz Lehmkuhl, “We identified the project. The idea was to support an initiative to fit the needs of Arosa. We also developed the methodology to calculate carbon footprint of visitors.”
Arosa couldn’t have asked for a better project. Schmack Biogas is one of the fastest growing renewable energy businesses in Europe. The service provider has built more than 175 biogas plants.
In the renewable energy domain, biogas scores over wind and solar energy because its not influenced by weather and can be stored.
The tourist resort is also taking other measures to cut down emissions. Its encouraging travellers to reach the destination by train.
The number of train travellers to the destination has already gone up to 50%. On arrival, guests are offered free bus services to reduce their local car travel and emissions.
All these steps are significant considering that the threat of global warming is looming large over the Alps, which have been witnessing warm and late winters. It has an adverse impact on ski operators, tourism and the economy.
A 1C increase (in Switzerland) would reduce natural snow by 10% and 4C increase would halve the number of snow-reliable slopes, according to an OECD report, Climate Change in the European Alps: Adapting Winter Tourism and Natural Hazard Management.
Referring to adaptation measures like the use of artificial snow and plastic sheets and re-doing the slopes, the report adds that artificial snow will not be a viable option if temperatures increase above a certain threshold. Plastic sheeting will not prevent the eventual loss of glaciers if warming trends continue, and changing the terrain by grading the slopes and rerouting natural streams carries risks to the natural environment and increases chances of flash floods and rock falls. That leaves reducing carbon emissions as a viable option.
Arosa has already taken a lead and is being followed by tourist resorts of France, Austria, Germany and Italy. They are following us because we had incredible success, points out Lehmkuhl.
This report was written on a Media21 fellowship
Source: The Financial Express
Published on 21 September 2007